Drilling

What is drilling?

At its simplest, drilling means listening to a model, provided by the teacher, or a tape or another student, and repeating what is heard. This is a repetition drill, a technique that is still used by many teachers when introducing new language items to their students. The teacher says (models) the word or phrase and the students repeat it.

Other types of drill include substitution drills, or question and answer drills. Substitution drills can be used to practise different structures or vocabulary items(i.e. one or more words change during the drill).
Example:
Prompt: 'I go to work. He?'
Response: 'He goes to work.'
In question and answer drills the prompt is a question and the response is the answer. This is used for practising common adjacency pairs such as 'What's the matter?', 'I've got a (headache') or 'Can I have a (pen) please?', 'Yes here you are.' The words in brackets here can be substituted during the drill.
In all drills learners have no or very little choice over what is said so drills are a form of very controlled practice. There is one correct answer and the main focus is on 'getting it right' i.e. on accuracy. Drills are usually conducted chorally (i.e. the whole class repeats) then individually . There is also the possibility of groups or pairs of students doing language drills together.

What drills can be useful for:
For the learners, drills can:
Provide for a focus on accuracy. Increased accuracy (along with increased fluency and complexity) is one of the ways in which a learner's language improves so there is a need to focus on accuracy at certain stages of the lesson or during certain task types.
Provide learners with intensive practice in hearing and saying particular words or phrases. They can help learners get their tongues around difficult sounds or help them imitate intonation that may be rather different from that of their first language.
Provide a safe environment for learners to experiment with producing the language. This may help build confidence particularly among learners who are not risk-takers.
Help students notice the correct form or pronunciation of a word or phrase. Noticing or consciousness raising of language is an important stage in developing language competence.
Provide an opportunity for learners to get immediate feedback on their accuracy in terms of teacher or peer correction. Many learners want to be corrected.
Help memorisation and automisation of common language patterns and language chunks. This may be particularly true for aural learners.
Meet student expectations i.e. They may think drilling is an essential feature of language classrooms.

For the teacher, drills can:
Help in terms of classroom management, enabling us to vary the pace of the lesson or to get all learners involved.
Help us recognise if new language is causing problems in terms of form or pronunciation.

www.teachingenglish.org.uk\think\methodology\drilling.html

Learning & The Brain

Basics Of Teaching Vocabulary

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Basics Of Teaching Vocabulary

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Some Techniques for Teaching New Words

o Say the word clearly and write it on the board.
o Get the class to repeat the word in chorus.
o Translate the word, or ask students to translate.
o Draw a picture to show what the word means.

0 Use visual aids.
o Give an English example.
o Ask questions using the new word.
o Say an opposite of the word.
o Collocation (e.g. to apply for a job).

Ways to Encourage More Use of English in Class

Here are more ways to create opportunities for simple communication in English lessons:

· Start each lesson by asking students about their week, weekend or previous evening. Talk about yours in a natural way: “Did anyone see that funny programme on TV last night?”

· Ask for explanations in English whenever students are able.

· Involve students in board work, asking them to spell aloud a word you are writing, inviting younger learners to complete a summary, write a question or correct a mistake on the board.

· Avoid asking “Do you understand?” Try to get more comments with questions to check understanding: “Why is there an 's' on this verb?” or “Can you pronounce this word?”

· Get students to refer to an English-English dictionary (take your own if necessary). Play games involving definitions (eg. Guessing a described object; animal, vegetable or mineral?; or What’s my line? with job descriptions.) Do simple crosswords with clues.

· · Practise and encourage all common classroom requests: “Can I have another piece of paper?” or “May I go to the toilet, please?” - Students may not use English requests amongst themselves but insist they do with you.

Encouraging students can eventually pay-off. If they enjoy your lessons, their attitude to speaking English will improve over time.

Activating Strategies

How do activating strategies help students learn?

To have success in fully comprehending text or subject matter, students need to become aware of what they already know about the topic.

Types of Activating Strategies:

KWL and KWL Plus*
Wordsplash
Carolina Four Corners
Possible Sentence
Story Board
The Envelope Please
Anticipation Guide / Prediction Guide*
Brainstorm Carousel
Brainstorm “Flexibility Style” Web
Brainstorm and Categorize
Draw a Picture or Diagram
Activating Acrostic
Dear Teacher
What’s Already in my Head?
Find Someone Who Can Tell You
Pre-reading Plan*
LINK*
5-3-1*
Circle Map*
Structured Note-Taking*
Directed Reading / Thinking Activity*

How do you know if you used an appropriate Activating Strategy {that it was effective}?

Students were mentally active during this time
Students contributed information or personal ideas
Students used new vocabulary appropriately during the lesson
Students were able to connect new learning to their current (old) knowledge

**Activating Strategies of the Week**
ANTICIPATION/PREDICTION GUIDE
ACTIVATING ACROSTIC

Anticipation/Prediction Guide:

Using their own thoughts and experiences, students respond to and discuss statements related to the topic to be studied. Students are able to discuss their answers with conviction because they are using their own background knowledge and experiences to do so. Using this strategy makes students read the text with greater focus because they are actively reading for evidence that supports their answers on their guides.

Step 1
Identify the major concepts and details in the reading / topic to be studied.
Step 2
Consider student misconceptions, beliefs, and experiences concerning the information. Create a few statements that may challenge or modify students’ understanding of the material (some true and some false statements).
Step 3
Present the statements to the students. Have students determine whether the statements are true or false.
Step 4
Discuss statements with students justifying their opinions
Step 5
Students will read the text and re-visit the Anticipation Guide. Students should locate sections in the reading that support their final decisions.

Example: Heart Disease

Read each statement below. If you agree put a check next to it. If you disagree put an X next to it.

_____ 1. Blood goes to the heart to get oxygen.
_____ 2. Arteries carry oxygenated blood.
_____ 3. Smoking cigarettes constricts blood vessels.
_____ 4. Drinking a caffeinated drink will raise your pulse.
_____ 5. Capillaries are large vessels that carry blood to the heart.


Activating Acrostic:

Students spell the topic to be studied down the side of the page. Then, they generate a word or phrase for each letter to tell something they think they know about the topic.

H - human body

E - emergency
A - amounts

L - lots of fruit

T - tired

H - hot food

Graphic Organizers

One of the most recent teaching techniques is to use a visual learning tool known as graphic organizers.Mind maps or graphic organizers sort and organize information such as categories, dates, concepts or sequences of information. They organize thoughts, increase understanding, and help students to remember information with more ease.

There are six basic types of graphic organizers.:

They are: 1) sequential; 2) Compare and contrast; 3) Character and story organizers; 4) cause and effect; 5) Vocabulary Organizers; 6) Note organizers.

Why do they work?

Random facts are quickly lost. However, the brain's ability to store pictures is unlimited. And since the brain likes to chunk information, the graphic organizer complements the way the brain naturally works.

When do they work?

Graphic organizers will be beneficial to students whenever they are given new information. They can be used to sequence, brainstorm and orgainize. During reading and listening students should be encouraged to graphically organize new information.

Word Walls

What are Word Walls?
A Word Wall is a systematically organized collection of words displayed in large letters on a wall or other display area in the classroom. Word Walls are not just decor for the classroom. It is a tool to use, not just display. Word Walls are designed to promote learning and are shared by a classroom of children.

Why Word Walls?
Word Walls serve as permanent records of student's language learning.
Word Walls provide ongoing support for varied language learners.
Word Walls enhance learning through practical use.
Using references is a real world strategy.
Building and Using Word Walls is easily integrated into daily literacy activities.

What are the goals of Word Wall?
To support the teaching of important general principals about words and how they work.
To foster reading and writing.
To promote independence on the part of young students as they work with words in writing and reading.
To provide a visual map to help children remember connections between words and the characteristics that will help them form categories.
To develop a growing core of words that become part of a reading and writing vocabulary.
To provide reference for children during their reading and writing.

What are the guidelines for making a Word Wall?
· Add words gradually. (approximately 5 a week)
· Make words very accessible by putting them where every student can see them, writing them in large black letters and using a variety of background colors (so the most often confused words such as three, their, what, when are different colors.)
· Be selective about what words go on the wall, limiting additions to really common words which children us a lot in writing.
· Use the word wall daily to practice words incorporating a variety of activities. such as: chanting, tracing, word guessing games as well as writing them.
· Provide enough practice so that words are read and spelled automatically and make sure that word walls are always spelled correctly in the children's daily writing.

Flashcards activities

Like a lightning Show a flashcard very quickly and then hide it.The pupils have to guess what
picture is it.

Guess my flashcard Choose a lashcard but don't show it to the pupils.They have to guess it. The one who says the correct word is the next one to choose a flashcard .

What's missing? Stick some of the flashcards on the blackboard. Give one minute to the pupils to memorise them. Then ask them to close their eyes while you take out one of the cards. When they open their eyes they have to guess what flashcard is missing.

Memory Stick some flashcards on the blackboard. Write a number under every flashcard. Give a minute to look at the numbers and the flashcards and then turn the cards over.Then you ask questions like: "What flashcard is number ( seven) ?" or " What number is (the dog)?" Instead of numbers you can use colours or any other vocabulary you want to review.

I forgot a word! Stick some cards on the blackbord. Say the names of the flashcards in random order but miss one name. The pupils have to say what word did you miss.

Pictionary Divide the class into teams of four or five pupils. Show a flashcard to one person of each group. He or she has to draw it and the rest of the team has to guess what the word is. The first group to guess it gets a point.

Error correction techniques

Ask a question
For example: Student: "I go out last night."Teacher: "In the past? Go in the past is...?"

Facial expression
For example: Student: "I walking home last night when my cell phone rang."Teacher: "I... ." and then frowns expecting the student to correct.

Gesture combined with facial expression
For example: Student: "I go to home." Teacher counts on her fingers the amount of words that the student says and then raises her eyebrows to show incorrect amount of words.The teacher repeats the sentence but as she says the words, she counts them off on her fingers.

Finger correction (As above)
This is very useful when showing students contractions i.e. say: "I am going to go" but then indicate that 'I' and 'am' join by putting two fingers together.

Ask a one word question - tense? Past?
This is a good technique for lower level studentsi.e. they say: "I go yesterday" and the teacher says 'go' with rising intonation, making it a question.

Write the problem sentence on the board
Write the entire incorrect sentence on the board. At the end of an activity, ask the students to correct it.

Use the phonemic chart
Point to the correct phoneme that students should use as the students are speaking. For example: student: "I rike chocolate." Point to /l/ and point to what the student said. Ask the student to repeat the correct sound.

Chain correction, ask other students
Say the incorrect word/sentence to the students and then ask: "Does that sound right?""If I will go, I will enjoy myself. Can anyone see anything wrong in that?"

Repeat sentence up to the error
Student: "I go to home at 9pm every day."Teacher: "I go ____ "and indicates a problem.

Draw a time line
Student: "I took a bath while I watched TV." Teacher indicates past continuous on a timeline, i.e. an activity which took place over a period of time.

Tell them
Simply tell the students the correct English.

Ways to Teach Vocabulary

There are lots of ways of getting across the meaning of a lexical item.

Illustration: This is very useful for more concrete words (dog, rain, tall) and for visual learners. It has its limits though, not all items can be drawn.

Mime: This lends itself particularly well to action verbs and it can be fun and memorable.

Synonyms/Antonyms/ Gradable items: Using the words a students already knows can be effective for getting meaning across.

Definition: Make sure that it is clear (maybe check in a learner dictionary before the lesson if you are not confident). Remember to ask questions to check they have understood properly.

Context: Think of a clear context when the word is used and either describe it to the students or give them example sentences to clarify meaning further.

Translation: As a last resort, translation is fast and efficient. Remember that not every word has a direct translation..

Working with dialogues

Dialogues are clearly a very important focus in the classroom & we use them for many purposes in class, from focusing on language to providing a structure for speaking. Here's a round up of a few ideas in no particular order:

1. Dialogue building - this is where you elicit dialogue prompts onto the board, drilling each line as you go along so that the students then have the dialogue in pairs. They repeat the dialogues, taking it in turns to take a role, & then they substitute different ideas into the dialogue but still keeping the structure of the dialogue. See the past Tip 'Building it up' for more:http://www.developingteachers.com/tips/pasttips27.htm

2. Dialogue completion - students fill in the missing parts to check that they understand the target language of the lesson, & then the dialogue is read aloud to each other. If the dialogue is open-ended, the students continue it with their own ideas, hence incorporating a degree of fluency practice at the same time.

3. Dialogue drama >> give out a 6-8 line dialogues, assign roles & students practice the dialogue 4 or 5 times, enough so that they memorise the dialogue. Then they discuss the situation, what came before the dialogue & what came after. Then they act out the whole scene & finally act it out for the class.

4. Mutual dictation - choose a dialogue that contains language you want to review. Give out one side of the short dialogue to student A & the other half to student B. They read aloud their parts & write in what the other says until they both have complete dialogues. Then focus on the language in the context of the dialogue.

5. Unjumbling dialogues - copy & cut up, jumble up & the students put the dialogue in order. It's a good way of contrasting formal & informal language if you jumble up two dialogues.

6. Chain dialogue - students take it in turns in providing the next line to a two-person dialogue.

7. Pronunciation focus - any dialogue can be exploited for pronunciation awareness. After a listening, give out the tapescript & students mark certain features such as the tone units & prominence, weak forms, intrusion & elision etc.. After marking the students listen to verify their versions.

8. Flow charts - very underused dialogues with choices - see the Tip 'Going with the flow': http://www.developingteachers.com/tips/pasttips14.htm

9. Simple written dialogue - if you are at a loss for a practice activity, simply ask the students to write a dialogue containing the target language items. 10. Transcribing dialogues - while the students are doing a speaking task, tape them & type up a section & then use the transcript to focus on a language area. You might even get the students transcribing dialogues to bring into class for use.

11. Shadow reading - hand out a dialogue, the students listen to it & read silently. They then read along to the dialogue in exactly the same manner as it is being played on the tape. Assign roles & they read these aloud at the same time as the tape & gradually turn down the volume as they become better at the dialogue so that it is the students sounding exactly like the original on the tape. See the Tip 'Shadow Reading': http://www.developingteachers.com/tips/pasttips11.htm

12. Presentation dialogues - check out the two past Tips 'Lifting it off' & 'Using the script' for ideas on presenting language from dialogues. http://www.developingteachers.com/tips/pasttips26.htmhttp://www.developingteachers.com/tips/pasttips53.htmSometimes the problem with using teacher & coursebook -produced dialogues is that they tend to sound unnatural & fail to contain features of natural speech. A tape of you & your friends can be very revealing when used in class. Students can see all the hesitations & false starts & see that native speakers make mistakes & that conversation is not the neat dialogue that they see in coursebooks. Focusing on these features help them to become more effective communicators.

Bad Teaching Practices

In my frequent visits to our English teachers in their classrooms I tend to see some ineffective teaching practices which have been done so repeatedly and more often “unconsciously”. Therefore, my main concern here is to shed some light on the not so good aspects that are taking place in the classroom to help our teachers get rid of them.

1. Not checking the previous homework
Some teachers start the new lesson as soon as they enter the classroom taking away from the students a chance to get to know how well they have done the homework and if their answers were correct. Checking the previous homework will give you an immediate feedback on how much your students are taking in from what you taught them earlier and subsequently how successful your teaching was.

2. No proper introduction for the new lesson.
Because of keenness to finish the new lesson before the bell rings, some teachers miss a vital component of a good lesson, i.e. “the introduction”. Starting the lesson with an attention-grabbing introduction not only paves the way to more structured learning but it also helps students be in a receptive frame of mind. Using pictures, graphics, real objects, or role-play has proven to be a good technique to start up the lesson.

3. Not reviewing the previous lesson/s
Some teachers seem to be more concerned with the new lesson and less concerned with the previous one. However, it is believed that reviewing some important points from previous lessons reinforces learning and makes students remember things for a long time. If you ensure that the first three or four minutes of every lesson are allocated for reviewing and setting up varied oral and written activities, many benefits will come through.

4. Lesson lacks structure
Lessons which are not structured well are often those which are not planned well. Studies have shown that the more organized the teacher is, the more effective the teaching. In fact, when a teacher comes into the classroom with clear and specific objectives not only on paper but more importantly in her mind, she is most probably going to achieve satisfying outcomes.

5. Lesson lacks variety.
When lessons are administered in the same way over and over again and with almost the same tools, the chances are the students will quickly become bored and teaching will ultimately become fruitless. Variety awakens the students’ involvement and motivation. Integrating a variety of teaching methods: role-playing, brainstorming, cooperative learning teams, debates, presentation, etc. can break the routine.

6. No use of visuals or teaching aids.
The use of instructional aids in the language classroom cannot be emphasized more. A lesson where the teacher uses pictures, posters, drawings, graphics, audio, maps, magazines, real objects, encyclopaedia or technology is far more exciting than another without.

7. Teacher talks too much.
Some teachers talk too much and turn their lessons into lectures which consequently deprive the students from using the language. The fact that should always be remembered is that the students need the practice, not you. Creating a balance between your talk and the students’ should be present in your mind to move from teacher-centred to students-centred learning.

8. Teacher mispronounces or misspells some words.
It is so frustrating to see the teacher mispronounces or misspells some words and teaches the students wrong pronunciation or spelling. If you are not sure how to pronounce or spell a certain word learn the habit of using the dictionary well ahead of time to save yourself any embarrassment in front of your students.

9. Teacher uses Arabic.
When an English language teacher resides to the students’ native language to explain new input, this gives a clear indication to the weak teaching skills the teacher has. You can easily get your message across by using pictures, gesture, facial expression or rephrasing instead of lapsing into quick explanations in Arabic every now and then which will undermine your role.

10. Teaching is focused on content not skills
Language is the most important thing in the English lesson and the information provided in the textbooks is only the medium to convey language. Unfortunately, some teachers get a bit carried away and focus too much on the content. Emphasize ‘mastering’ not ‘covering’ the material and pace the instruction to match the students’ rate of learning.

11. Students have limited language production
Limiting the students’ responses to “Yes”, “No” or one or two word answer does not actually help students to increase their language production. They have to be taught to elaborate and to form complete sentences when responding to questions. One has to remember that it is the students’ right to use the target language in class, which is for some their only opportunity to do so.

12. Ineffective classroom management
Good classroom management is nearly invisible; that is because good classroom management allows students to focus on the activities and what they are learning rather than on what the teacher is doing to control and manage the activities. Setting classroom rules and having the students learn the procedures of every activity could save a lot of time.

13. The affective aim is not achieved
In the midst of busy schedules and long working hours, some teachers forget the influential impact they have on the students’ lives. Most students value what teachers say about a certain topic, therefore you need to take advantage of any opportunity in or outside class to instil the Islamic teachings and values.

14. Weak students are left behind
Some teachers tend to focus on good students and ignore those who are not so good. It is normal that there are individual differences between students. Not all students have the same skills or abilities, thus your job as a teacher is to present input in varied ways to accommodate for all the differences in abilities as well as intelligences.

15. Students get little reinforcement and encouragement
Reinforcing the students’ positive responses and active participation either verbally or non-verbally has a tremendous effect on the students’ self esteem and motivation. Whenever the students get ample praise for the work they achieve brilliantly, they will absolutely gain confidence and be motivated to work harder.

16. The board is not used efficiently
Perhaps the only teaching aid which you do not have to carry around or spend too much time to prepare is the board. If used effectively, it can really liven up your lessons and add more interest. Yet, remember to let your students use it too.

17. Little or no evaluation tasks
When you ask “Do you understand?” most probably the answer you will get is “Yes”. This answer does not always yield on complete understanding. To measure the students’ comprehension, you need to set tasks (verbally and in writing) for them to do in class. Yet, before administering these tasks you have to make sure that the students fully understand what they have to do.

18. Not assigning homework for next lesson
Giving frequent and regular homework assignments provide students with the opportunity to practice what they learned and deepen understanding. Make sure to assign homework that is interesting and most importantly different from what they had in class. Getting the students to answer questions that are answered and repeated in class will only promote memorization.

Finally, always bear in mind that only by acknowledging our faults and weaknesses can we start to adopt new practices and look for solutions.